I went to TIHC to see Breakdown play with its original line up. After all, these are guys from my neighborhood in Yonkers and I haven’t seen them play together since I saw them open for Uniform Choice’s first show at CBGB’s almost 25 years ago to the day (it is insane how old I am/ how long I’ve been around hardcore). Originally I was gonna ride down with the band in the AM so I would have had a chance to see more bands and provide you bro’s with more of a complete review but due to no room and going out a little too late the night before (well worth it), I caught a ride with my friend Lucia who is Carl from Killing Time/Breakdown’s girlfriend (she’s been to a lot of shows) and her besty Alex who was visiting from Wales (she’s never been to a HC show).
1:45 (ish- all times are approximate) My sons are out of town with their mother- so I’m having a leisurely late- Sunday morn. Iced coffee, park bench, Sunday NY Times, chillin.. Relaxing so much just realize that I’m running late already! Gotta get to Williamsburg in 15 min!
2:15 Meet the girls by Kellogg’s Diner- got a nice veggie sushi roll at the spot across the street. Hit the road…
2:40 We get through BK and Staten Island – no traffic! Amazing… rocking a 3 hour mix that my brother recorded at one of his nights a Ms. Lily’s. Lots of new dancehall and R’n’B.
3:15 Hit a rest stop on the NJ Turnpike for coffees. Always wonder what Anglos/Euros think of ugly America. Alex seems unfazed by the sights and sounds of a McDonald’s on the NJ Turnpike. I myself, being an urban sophisticate, am completely horrified…
3:45 Details of the girls’ recent voyage to Miami Beach. Absolute DEAD silence when I make a totally off color joke about the sexual proclivities of women from Miami. In the car for less than 2 hours and I’ve already said something really offensive. We were bro-ing out so hard I forgot who my audience was (sorry girls, srsly!).
4:00 Traffic… we are aiming to get to Philly before KT set at 515. I think we are good, Lucia is worried, Killing Time is supposed to go on at 5:15. Texts from Carl wondering where we are. Anyway, this Zipcar has really nice AC and my bro’s mix is moving into some Soca. Never could stand that stuff back in the day. I sort of like it now. Don’t know what that says about me..
4:30 Traffic.. We are going 1 mile/ hr. I really dislike the State of New Jersey.
4:45 Finally moving again.. Lucia is driving like a girl hellbent on not missing a note of her man’s set. You go girl!
5:00 Moved onto to my playlist of 90’s stuff/ music they use to play at Kenmare (Damn, I really miss that spot!) like Happy Mondays, Blur, Charlatan’s UK, New Order. Hanging with an Italian girl and her friend from Cardiff chatting about fancy brunches and it practically is Kenmare ‘cept I’m wearing a seatbelt, there are less drugs, and it isn’t 4:52 am.
5:15 finally cross the Ben Franklin Bridge. We are 2 minutes from the show. Don’t know about now days, but it used to be that back in the day the you knew your were getting closer to the HC show by how bad the neighborhood was. More burnt out cars/ boarded up buildings meant you were getting warmer. The Electric Factory looks like it is in a neighborhood that was once like that but has been recently spruced up.
5:20 Find a parking spot right in front! Just gotta feed the meter. Hit the bathroom at the sports bar next to the gig. Did I mention how much I hate Philly sports fans? (Full disclosure: I’m a huge Giants fan) For some reason there are a lot of them in NY these days. If your city is sooo amazing, why the fuck did you move up here ? 9 out of 10 times if you see a dude in Phillies/Eagles/Flyers jersey in a bar – he’s drunk and an asshole. Anyway, I’m now in a Philly sports bar- hurry up girls! Let’s get out of here!
5:25 Check in at the back, get our badges/ wristbands, etc. Totally impressed by the whole vending set up behind the venue- combining all the fun of hanging out across the street from the club with all the vending options of a Grateful Dead show. I back this extra hard! I quickly peruse the merch tables/ food options. Oh, this is gonna be good…
5:30 Go inside to catch the last few notes of a band that features the fat dude who does record reviews on Vice.com on bass. Actually, they are pretty good. I love Oi! And they are a pretty passable Oi band with Cockney accents and everything…
5:40 Checking out the crowd hanging out in the back. Interesting trends/ signs that things are always improving: cute 19 yo girl with an “Antidote-Thou Shalt Not Kill” shirt. Really cute OTW girl with NYHC neck tattoo.
5:45 Find all the Killing Time guys. Killing Time sets up. We hit the bar. Interesting that Yuengling “Supreme” is cheaper than regular Yuengling. Anyhoo- have the first of many beers for the day…
Damn, the Electric Factory is huge and has a great soundsystem (beats the pants off of Terminal 5) Having been on tours before, I really appreciate that the club in addition to showers, has washers and dryers backstage. That’s a pro-touch. Explain to Alex about how KT “Brightside” is considered a “classic” for the genre.
6:15 Killing Time finishes up a set of almost all stuff from the “Brightside.” They sound tight/heavy/ hard. After they are done, a guy comes on and makes an announcement that I don’t think I will ever hear again in my life: “There will be a 30 minute dinner break then- Negative Approach!!!!”
6:16- Go outside and hit the Veggie Banh Mi cart. Have the veg chicken sandwich.. So good! Check out the t-shirt options, its gonna be a tough call. Also, run into Eric from Rumpshaker Fanzine. Pick up a copy of his latest issue (which is more of a book than a zine) There’s a 16 page interview with Mike Judge in it!
6:45 Negative Approach!!! Never saw them back in the day as they are a 1st generation band that had broken up by the time my 2nd generation ass started going to shows. Long and short they killed it! John Brannon (singer of NA) looks really good considering he’s 51 and from what I gather has had a history of bad habits. Prob cause he has some of the same extra robust Midwestern genes that helped Iggy survive too.
Met some photographer girl online to the bathroom who said she’d hit me off with some flix for the post. Never got back to me (I too would have been unimpressed by some dude writing a post for his “blog”), so we’re stuck with shots from my phone.
7:15 Going back to the parking lot run into Ezec before Crown of Thorns goes on. Say what up- haven’t seen him in over 10 years, just ran into him at a club in NYC a few weeks back, now here. Great dude. Make up my mind- going with the Negative Approach t-shirt. Have some more beers with the Killing Time/Breakdown/ Crown of Thornz dudes and friends- we breezed through a case of Yuengling and are now on to our second 30 pack of PBR’s. It’s a party…
7:30 Got a chance to talk to John Brannon as they were loading out. After briefly fanboying- I’m huge Negative Approach fan and an even bigger Laughing Hyenas fan (late 80’s/90’s band he did after NA)- I asked him what he though of my “hardcore as roots music theory”- He said he agrees and says basically the same thing all the time- It’s like old timey rock n roll at this point! Those dudes are excited for their upcoming tour west coast tour w OFF! I’ll prob see’em when they play the Power of the Riff show in NY with AF.
7:45 Hit the banh mi cart again- damn those things are gooood..
8:00 Hang with Carl and catch up with a bunch of friends who I haven’t seen in a minute.
A little of Breakdown history: As I mentioned before, they are band from Yonkers that was started by Carl, Rich, and Drago pre- Killing Time/ Raw Deal. They put out demo cassette in 1987 (later released as a 7”), played a few shows, and then those guys left Breakdown to form Raw Deal (Killing Time) with Anthony from Token Entry. Jeff, Breakdown’s singer, kept the band together over the years with various line ups, recorded a track for the Revelation “The Way It Is” comp, and did a few albums. Now the band has gotten back together with all five original members from the “Demo” line up (the fifth member, Don dropped out of hardcore after Carl, Rich and Drago left. Until they started rehearsing again, I hadn’t seen him in 20+ years). They played Chaos in Tejas a few months back and TIHC is their second show since reforming.
9:15 Breakdown plays a set of the entire 87 demo plus a couple of songs from the other releases the band did after the KT guys left. Totally awesome! So weird to see so many kids knowing the songs just from a demo tape released 25 years ago- but then again as Sarge and I both agree- with filesharing and a small, dedicated fanbase that jizzes over obscurities, hardcore is the perfect genre for the internet!
9:30 Even contemplate a stage dive for old time sake- then backed out. I’m in shape, I play b-ball 3 times a week- but on the off, off, off chance that I did get hurt, I don’t think I could tell people that at 41, father of 2, I hurt myself “moshing.” For real, getting into a fight would be easier to explain, at least I could blame it on the other dude.
I know its mad blurry, but that is me in the red shirt stagediving when Breakdown played the Tompkins Square Park bandshell a few days after the riots!
9:45 Everyone then hung out after ward back stage, great times. I checked out some of Blacklisted and then helped load out.
11:15 On the way out of town we get mildly lost for a few minutes. Being a New Yorker who once got lost in Oakland, I am completely terrified of the “hood” in any other big American city: Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, you name it. I’ve walked around everywhere in NY: East New York nowdays, even the LES and the Bronx in the 80’s and felt safe-ish- the rest of America does hood differently than New York. Don’t think we went anywhere too crazy, but my only points of reference for the “City of Brotherly Love” are Beanie Sigel and Freeway! Other than that, the drive home is pretty uneventful- we left late enough to miss all the Shore traffic.
Had an amazing time. I really was impressed with how well run the event was and more importantly with the vibe. Everyone was having a great time and this was on day 4 of 4 where everyone was probably a little tired out. I can only image what the energy was like on one of the earlier nights. Would go back next year in a second..
Minus being in Philly, sounds excellent. Oakland is not-that-bad btw. Unless u are a black-male or a Mexican (or a child standing next to either) you don’t stand much chance of getting killed, Richmond is another story.
burnt ramen white people
This was a really cool write up, thanks for doing it!
I’ve wanted to go to TIH really bad since it started, but unfortunately I live in California and never make it out :(
Sound and Fury is cool but tbh the lineup of TIH usually blows it out of the water imo
yup gotta give the east coast props on TIH. Each year it has sick ass bands on one night i wish i could go to… Power of da riff also kix ass as it is on both coasts this year… good shit
tha city of brothas on drugz! damn i guess philly will always be a shithole, damn even D.C. is nice now. i guess theres always baltimore for them to look down on…
Incredible username!
pass dat wet
Vegetarian chicken sandwich?! Sorry what?
Maybe the chicken was a vegetarian, DID YOU EVER THINK OF THAT????? AND more importantly, WHAT KIND OF ROSÉ GOES WELL WITH IT, HUH!???? ANSWER ME NAO!!!!!!
PWNED
Mirin your gayness
HA!
Just saying what up Cardiff!
Damn bro you are OLD AS FUK!
Props on being an urban sophisticate. I hope to be one when I grow up (srs)
“I really dislike the State of New Jersey.” hating on NJ might be the cool thing to do, but this is the best description on how I feel about NJ. It sounds more pleasant than, “FUCK NJ”, but also makes it feel more real. Seriously, NJ is awful.
“Did I mention how much I hate Philly sports fans? (Full disclosure: I’m a huge Giants fan) For some reason there are a lot of them in NY these days. If your city is sooo amazing, why the fuck did you move up here ?” This is the same in Baltimore. Why are you here? go home. It’s always one dude, drunk, and his GF, who is also wearing a Philly jersey, but obviously only because he asked to her. My point is that Philly sucks, and the two things I took away from this great write up are that Bahn Mis are awesome, and you had to travel through two of the worst places on earth to have a good time.
I feel like there is an inverse relationship between how proud people are to be from a given city, and how good that city actually is. Eg, everybody from Philly cannot shut up about how proud they are to be there and it is a complete shithole. Same for the entire tri-state area, really. But people from LA and OC are always talking shit on their hometowns, yet they are the best place on earth. Ditto for Seattle.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
same here in dutchland, every young person will tell you how awful the netherlands is and how boring, ghey and grumpy everyone is but thats b.s. since this is one of the safest and most welfaring countries to grow up in
not 100% sure on that one, Detroit/the majority of Michigan is shit and most people owe up to it. The few cool places like Grand Rapids are repped really hard by citizens via pulling off the acrobatic act of being in Michigan and being cool
i agree except think da GR is a shithole as well. I went to the tigers game on sunday (sat in the “tigers den” aka rich persons section– OMG it was awesome!) and was really surprised by how much new nice housing has been put in in the D… esp with no retail???!?
anyways its still a shithole along w/ GR
and oh yeah i rep the mitten hard too!!! fuk socal and all dat stretchface! we got obesity which=fat titties!!! and real easy trim!! quantity-over-quality is what Murica about. we dont need to ply our bitches w/ coke… ranch dressing ftw!
This is extremely accurate. I live in Troy, NY which is a HUGE trashhole, but there is an extremely large amount of TROY PRIDE. There are multiple lines of t-shirts that represent Troy, any band from here calls themselves “Troycore,” you can’t go anywhere without hearing how great it is (unless you leave the city). I think it’s just a way for people to rationalize the shit box that their life has become.
Upstate NY is mad ghey. For all the trash D talks about the city, I cant imagine how yall survive. Like a whole ‘nother backwoods country.
Also, mirin your username hard.
wood rather spend an eternity in NYC than five minutes in upstate ny/10
Meh, I was just in Albany and it didn’t seem that bad. Was like a poorer version of Santa Cruz actually, haha.
Then again, I live in Salinas and therefore have notoriously low standards in life
didjew know that sureño cholos in nor-cal are called upstate sureños??
themoreyouknow.wav
Bro, gotta hear that joke.
For some reason whenever Negative Approach plays their hometown (Detroit) nowadays it’s awful. John Brannon does vocals like Seth Putnam from Anal Cunt and honestly when I saw them last saturday, I watched one song, went outside, and waited for them to finish so I could enjoy Antiseen and the Meatmen.
waited for them to finish so I could enjoy Antiseen and the Meatmen
by ‘last saturday,’ do you mean 1986?
ha saw them a year ago at st andrews. wouldnt say the vocals were like that feeg from ac but he did just scream ‘em out modern HC steez. he also said, “Dont worry, im only on miller light…” he was sooo fucked up… glad it was just boooze…
and antiseen is ghry and the meatmens schtick is ghey and gets old fast… the music isnt enough to distract from tesco vees between song gheynesss
So basically this guy dicked around on a Sunday, watched like 3 bands at an all day festival, and went home. Great article.
Why don’t you do better?! (srs)
this is probably more for us older folk who are similar to him and enjoy living vicariously through one another’s “being an older gentleman” at our semi-annual hardcore show experiences.
Yep! and had really fun time…
get rid of the sarcasm from op and this is what i was gonna say
kinda funny (but not totally unexpected) to see a post that could easily be on doublecross here
I seriously fucking love Doublecross- it is my all-time favorite blog so I am very flattered by any comparisons to DCXX! It’s the only site I’ve come across that gives me the same stoked feeling that I used to get from zines when I was a kid, which is a very rare thing. Love what those guys do.
LOL, wut r zines?
like books but gayer
those dudes seem to still love HC like we used to. sooper legit. and they tell stories like doods tell stories
I would be thoroughly interested in a “Hardcore Hood” segment where dudes describe their local shitholes and the tours that come around their way. I’ve only been to DC and Philly as far as other major megalopoli beyond NY are concerned. I fared well, but I get the feeling that if I was in one of those larger expanse kinda hoods in the midwest and beyond like Gary Indiana, I’d be shittin bricks scared to walk down the street. Projects and skyscrapers provide good cover and concealment. Out west might as well be the savage plains of the Serengeti.
wood describe all the awesome shows/fights i saw at the pipeline in Newark for that segment.
the midwest is by far the most terrifying part of the country– in the cities it is usually neighborhood by neighborhood, but the midwest has whole cities that are almost nothing but shit
backd tard!!! this is why i hate going to texas to visit distant relatives on occasion =/ i could chill in DFW and other major cities but hate going to waco and other country ass boonies n shit…
I really think that what makes hoods different in other parts of the country is their isolation. In NYC, because of its compactness and the subway, everyone goes everywhere. Of course there are spots that you shouldn’t go, but on a whole I feel that things in NYC are way more chill because everyone is on top of everyone else. For real, I’m more scared of the ‘hood in Yonkers than almost anywhere in BK because it is so isolated (no subway) and you really have no reason ever to be there except if you live there or are into sketchy shit.
idk why but everytime i see dat “BK” i think of either da og 90s British Knights shoes i used to swag w/ as a kid or Burger King lol then i member it also stands for mofuckin’ Brooklyn… wood live there for the hipster pussy n female fotawg bitches/10
Would write an article about Jim Dandy’s in Salinas/10
fucking flint, michigan. holy shit… noone here has seen scarier shit…. gotdamn..
http://flintpoliceops.com/
peruse dat.. so many multiple homicides this yr.. smh
Fuck yeah Laughing Hyenas! I would rather see a Laughing Hyenas reunion show than NA, but that probably won’t happen since their guitarist died. Life of Crime and the Crawl ep are the ideal soundtrack to working 12 hours at the docks or a construction site and heading to the shitty bar by your place for happy hour and to stare balefully at the staycationing trust fund hipsters coming in from a kickball tournament or their pretend jobs at Habitat for Humanity.
The biggest difference between bands like Breakdown and Killing Time/Raw Deal and these nth generation bands, to me, lies primarily in the vocals. Jeff Perlin and Anthony Communale sounded/sound like grown ass men, not kids. There’s just nothing really threatening or dangerous sounding about bands like Incedniary or Backtrack because they got these guys who sound like 14 year olds. And no amount of fanboys posing hardstyle in streetwear on Instagram can change that.
Saw Killing Time on their reunion tour a few years ago at some skatepark in St. Pete with Uppercut. Met the guy who owns/owned? Blackout! Records. I think I’m in one of the videos haha.
If you think Incendiary’s vocalist sounds like a 14-year-old, you might be listening to the wrong band.
Nope.
We can’t all be John Joseph u know…
basically this re LH, SOOO good!
Laughing Hyenas / Negative Approach = still hardest than any other Trapped Under Ice/Twitching Tongues and other shitty cover bands outta here…
u agree?
1000%
Awesome post. I went on Sunday as well. That was my first time going to TIHC but I had a real good time. I showed up by 3 or 4 oclock and was shitting myself when I found out that there was no re-entry.
I watched every band from Nails up until Breakdown. For a few bands I only watched a few songs (Hard Skin, In My Eyes), but I liked every other band that played. That was my first time really hearing and seeing Nails. They were pretty tight.
The last time I saw Crown of Thornz was when I was in high school and was either at the Wetlands or at Irving Plaza with Downset and Earth Crisis. I was hoping they would be good, and they killed it! I’ve been thinking of how good that set was for the past week and a half.
Ezec had some prime banter as usual also:
Who here is over 30? You fucking losers!
Queens has everything! Simon and Garfunkel, Kiss, Run DMC…DMIZE
Who here is from NJ? You fuckin white trash!
The last time I saw Crown of Thornz was when I was in high school and was either at the Wetlands or at Irving Plaza with Downset and Earth Crisis
best fucking tour!! i remember it like it was yesterday <3
saw this tour. ’96 or ’97 or’98? i remember when they came to DET ezec bitching to the crowd that last time he came he got pussy and coke… also saw skarhead w/ vod and candiria in ’99 or 2000 at the same place… seems so wild now. fuck im old :/
Yonkers has everything! Ella Fitzgerald, Aerosmith, Jadakiss….Breakdown
I went to all 4 days of this fest and had a fucking great time. Also, the banh mi cart was easily the best food option all weekend (and also the cheapest!). I was definitely pooped by the time this day rolled around (via Gorilla Biscuits having played the night before) but I was so stoked on Breakdown/COT/Killing Time that I hardly cared. Gehenna also played a ridiculous set earlier in the day. I was moshing with a taped up knee from a pre-existing stage-diving injury and I can relate to Lars kinda because even though I’m a young’un, having to explain to my job how I hurt myself was embarrassing as fuck for real.
If your city is sooo amazing, why the fuck did you move up here ?
could totally relate brah!!! being a super metropolis powerhouse does have its cons as you do get a whole shitload of out-of-towners that move in on ur territory dat still be talkin’ shiieet….
but watevs… you swear philly or whatever pitstain in the midwest sports team can match the championships that NY/LA or even BASTEN (I still have a hatred for the celtics but i give em respect via my boner for green-eyed-pale-skin basten chix w/ hoop earrings!!) has on thier levels hehe ;-D
speaking of “HxC hood” I shood write a review of the blvd in boyle heights and thier legendary CBGB-ish grimyness
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXbqeo8cP_A
speaking of “HxC hood” I shood write a review of the blvd in boyle heights and thier legendary CBGB-ish grimyness
Hell yeah money, wood read.
WOULD HARRRRD.
easily one of the best post up there,my twosents
Not sure if it is mandatory in other second tier cities, but in Philadelphia it is not enough just to represent Philadelphia, you must always represent your neighborhood as well. Preferably with a tattoo, but a T-shirt also works.
Breakdown live at Tompkins Square :
https://vimeo.com/56800835
Legendary set, watch, mosh, repeat.